Non-Religious Meditation

There was a time in my life when I thought meditation was for birds. I didn’t have time for sitting in silence with so many other things needing my time and attention.  Yet, since I’ve been back from Italy the past couple of weeks, I’ve realized that I need to simplify some things. I need to get centered and find more internal peace and happiness.  I know that I can’t change all the circumstances in my life but I can shift my state of mind.  I can change how I cope with stress, disappointment, sadness and fear.

Last week I began speaking with a close friend, Denise, who is a yoga instructor and also one who practices meditation regularly.  I explained to her that I wanted to learn some breathing techniques to help me slow down and cope with some of the challenges life brings.  Now before you go thinking that Christians should PRAY not meditate, I ask that you look at meditation as a non-religious practice that relies on breath awareness, visualization and feelings of love. And YES! I encourage you to STILL PRAY!

What I have learned from my time with Denise is that just a few minutes of meditation can help empty your mind for a while so you can relax and decompress. It is beneficial to your mental, physical and emotional health. Meditation doesn’t have to be about foreign religious/spiritual practices, it’s more about you, who you really are at the core. Yesterday Denise sent me an email inviting me to spend 7 minutes of mediation at noon.  I accepted.  During those 7 minutes we focused on deep, rhythmic breaths, feelings of love, happiness, peace and most of all, gratitude.  After those 7 minutes I found myself in a place of contentment, right there at work in a small office.  Both prayer and meditation can be done anywhere. The more you incorporate both into your daily routine, the easier it will be to find calm, inner strength, resilience and peace. I encourage you to try it.

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